“Um, Lilisha, are you sure this is the right way?”
Eileen followed behind the doll-like girl Lilisha, walking through the town’s streets. But Lilisha kept heading into dark, narrow alleyways.
Claret, who trailed behind them, already wore a wary expression.
Eileen also felt something was off. Who would live in a place like this?
Lilisha apologized, “Please forgive us. My master hates sunlight and prefers places that are dark and shadowy.”
What kind of bizarre taste was that?
She couldn’t understand it. The “master” Lilisha spoke of—if not a noble—had to be at least a wealthy merchant.
But to dislike bright, open places and favor these shady, filthy alleys?
Eileen glanced around. This was probably the most dangerous part of town, and along the way, quite a few drunken derelicts were eyeing them with unkind expressions.
It was the kind of place where even if someone went missing, no one would notice.
If not for Eileen’s firm belief that Lilisha wasn’t a bad person, she would have turned back already.
“Please don’t worry, Miss Eileen. All the local thugs here have already been dealt with by my master. They won’t dare make trouble again.”
As she spoke, Lilisha stopped in front of a certain house and bowed politely to Eileen.
“We’ve arrived, Miss Eileen. My master is inside. Please, go in.”
Eileen didn’t hesitate. She was curious about this master with such peculiar tastes that Lilisha had mentioned. But the moment she opened the door—
A bottle flew straight at her.
Luckily, Lilisha reacted quickly and caught the bottle midair, preventing Eileen from getting her head split open.
Eileen looked inside. Just as Lilisha had said, her “master” disliked bright places. The curtains were drawn, and the room was dimly lit.
At a table in the center of the room sat a black-haired, red-eyed girl. Her cheeks were flushed from drinking, and the table in front of her was littered with empty liquor bottles. The air reeked of alcohol.
Eileen frowned involuntarily. Claret didn’t even dare to step through the door.
Lilisha set the empty bottle down and frowned. “Master, you’ve drunk this much again. I’ve told you already—this much alcohol is bad for your health.”
The black-haired girl looked dazed, her whole demeanor that of a fish washed ashore, completely devoid of dreams.
She cast a glance at the approaching Lilisha and snapped, “Who told you to nag me? You’re just a doll, not even a real person. Who gave you the right to talk back?”
Lilisha didn’t argue, merely sighed softly as she stepped to the table and began cleaning up the mess.
While working, she glanced at a group of adventurers sitting in the corner of the room and complained, “Captain Red Wolf, can’t you say something to stop her from drinking like this?”
The man referred to as “Red Wolf” was a burly fellow with a scar across his cheek, looking to be in his thirties.
Sitting with several other adventurer-types in one corner of the room, he gave a wry smile and replied, “Miss Lilisha, we’re just hired hands. Who are we to tell the boss what to do?”
The rest of the adventurers echoed the sentiment, and Lilisa could only sigh in resignation. She knew they weren’t wrong—her master had a terrible temper.
If her mood soured, there was no telling what she might do.
She hadn’t always been like this.
Eileen couldn’t help but glance again at Ji Yan’s group. She recognized the man known as “Red Wolf.”
His team was also an A-rank party, and with only one S-rank team in the kingdom, A-rank adventurers were already considered the elite.
To be able to hire Red Wolf and the “Crimson Flame” group as enforcers, this so-called “master” Lilisa spoke of must have deep pockets and serious backing.
Which only made the information about the “Lawbook” seem even more credible.
Eileen’s gaze drifted to the drunken girl again. The girl lifted her head, and her red eyes stared straight at Eileen with undisguised contempt.
“Lilisa, you’ve been gone this long and came back with nothing but an F-rank adventurer?”
“Master, while Miss Eileen is indeed F-rank, she—”
Before Lilisa could finish, the drunken girl slammed her hand on the table and slapped Lilisa hard across the face, knocking her to the floor.
She shouted, “How many times have I told you to find someone with experience! And you bring me this useless rookie? Are you trying to get me killed so you can go find yourself a new master, is that it?!”
Lilisa hurriedly tried to explain, “No, that’s not—”
Smack—another blow landed. Fueled by alcohol, the girl grabbed Lilisa by the collar and yanked her upright.
She snarled, “Still making excuses? I get it—you’re just like all the others. Because I was born without magic, you all look down on me! You’ve been planning to betray me from the start, haven’t you?!”
“Have you forgotten who gave you life? Who let you open your eyes again?”
“M-Master, that’s not true, please listen—”
But the drunken girl had no intention of listening. The other adventurers didn’t lift a finger to help. Disciplining a servant wasn’t their business.
Eileen finally had enough. “Hold on. Let’s set aside Lilisa’s situation for now—are you looking down on me?”
The sharp tone made the drunken girl snap back to her senses. She let go of Lilisa’s collar and turned her eyes to Eileen, letting out a hiccup.
“So what if I am? You’re just a worthless F-rank. I told Lilisa to bring me someone with real experience. Why would I need a rookie like you?”
Eileen blinked and looked the black-haired girl up and down, confused. “You… don’t recognize me?”
“Are you someone famous? Why should I know you?”
Eileen really was famous! There was only one S-rank team in the entire kingdom, and its members were household names—Eileen included.
Not to mention the recent media frenzy surrounding her. There probably weren’t more than a handful of people who didn’t know who she was!
And judging by this girl’s appearance, she didn’t seem to be from some backwater place. How could she possibly not recognize her?!
The voice of “Red Wolf” cut in: “Miss Froyah, this F-rank adventurer here is a former member of the S-rank team Rainbow Bonds. While she was mainly a support role within the group, it is true that she has been to Endymion City. I believe there’s no one more suited to serve as a guide than her—”
Red Wolf sized up Eileen.
“Although she has a notorious reputation, and it’s said she didn’t do much actual work in the team, Rainbow Bonds was the only team that survived Endymion City not through sheer luck, but through sheer strength. In other words, her experience is invaluable to us!”
Froyah was still willing to listen to her close aide. The displeasure in her eyes swiftly faded, and the flush on her face gradually disappeared—as if she’d sobered up in an instant?
Eileen was puzzled. This woman seemed a little… off. Her accent was strange—so precise and polished it sounded like something straight out of a textbook. She didn’t feel like someone local to the capital.
Then she heard Froyah speak again: “I see. Seems I misjudged you. Lilissa, you’ve done well this time. But what I’m curious about now is…”
Froyah’s blood-red eyes fell on Eileen, inexplicably giving her a sense of pressure. “Judging by your appearance, you don’t seem like someone who’s short on money. So why would you choose to take such a risk with us?”
“My goal is probably the same as yours.”
Froyah froze for a moment, then understood.
“Ah, I see. You were cast aside by your S-rank teammates once you were no longer useful. Humans are like that—whispering sweet words and calling you their best friend and companion. But once you can’t keep up with them, they throw you out of the team without a second thought.”
She gave a light chuckle. “You want to rewrite your talent too, don’t you? Sure thing—if you manage that, maybe you’ll even get a second chance at life!”
Eileen answered softly, “I wasn’t exactly kicked out, but… it’s more or less the same situation.”
She firmly believed that the root cause of her weakness was her damned innate talent.
That strange, gray-colored ability with no known function made her unable to learn anything properly. As a child, Eileen had been excited—after all, her mana level had tested at the highest rank!
But what good is high mana if you can’t learn magic?
Once she obtained the Book of Law and rewrote her talent, everything would change! Then she’d make all those heartless teammates eat their words!
Though her first impression of Froyah wasn’t great, Eileen figured they’d be traveling together for some time, so she reached out to shake hands.
Froyah’s hand, however, felt strangely cold to the touch. Was human body temperature supposed to be that low?